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Month: June 2018

More than 3 years ago, two dreamers set out on an audacious journey to solve the problem of congestion & pollution in urban cities of India. They saw how 20% of the people in cars occupied 80% of the road space. They witnessed how women were forced to endure harassment in overcrowded metros & buses.

We believed that the solution lies in providing an affordable, clean and comfortable mode of commute. Not many believed us. They wondered how a bootstrapped startup could afford to run a service which even the government needs vast funds to operate. But as they say, dreamers see what others don’t.

We launched our services with a single Innova. On the first day, 12 people took a ride and as if by magic, we had served office rides to 100 people in a week. We knew we were solving a real pain. Slowly more people starting believing in our vision and a small team of 5 grew into a passionate team of 100 in a few months. Everyone focused to solve for the pain of commute.

Challenges were so many, that it was easy to lose hope. But recognition along the way kept our spirits high. When we received the ConnectKaro Award for sustainable urban transportation in just a year, we knew our service model was sound. After receiving the Safest Commute award from FICCI in 2017, we knew our features were helping women in a big way. But an international recognition was way out of our dreams.

Recognition by Ashden is something we didn’t expect would happen so early in our journey. It still feels surreal to go to London and being recognized as a solution not just for India, but for every congested city in the world. The real thank goes to our customers, who always expect more from us and keep pushing us to outdo our own expectations.

The Ashden Award for Sustainable Urban Mobility has renewed our resolve to solve for commute pain for every office goer in India today and the world tomorrow.

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Today, the incredibly versatile and unbelievably cheap “plastic” is a man’s favorite resource. It is ideal for many applications but is also the leading cause of many environmental issues. Worldwide, nearly 2 million single-use plastic bags are distributed every minute.

Global plastic pollution by the numbers: The facts are overwhelming

100,000 marine animals killed by plastics each year

It takes 100 years for plastic to degrade in the environment

90% of bottled water and 83% of tap water found to contain plastic particles

In the last decade, we produced more plastic than in the whole last century!

Erik Solheim, head of United Nations Environment, believes the war is not against plastic, but against its thoughtless use. Keeping reduction of ‘single-use plastic’ in mind, the focus should be on its smart and safe use.

According to the India Times, India is responsible for an astonishing 60% of the plastic that is dumped in the world’s oceans every year.

However, we are on the road to progress already. Last year, Delhi introduced a ban on single-use plastic like cutlery, bags, cups, straws, etc.

Single-use plastic products

And this year, India is the global host of 2018 World Environment Day, taking place on June 5. With“Beat Plastic Pollution” as this year’s theme, the world, especially India, is coming together to combat single-use plastic pollution.

What can ‘we’ the working professionals do?

We, the working professionals, can also play a vital role in this cause. By reducing our dependency on the single-use-plastic, we can significantly impact the plastic levels in our environment. Here is the list of 3 such mindful choices:Disclaimer: Shuttl is neither a sponsor or nor a partner to any of these services. This article contains a list of environment-conscious brands like Shuttl, which are working towards a common cause – making this world a better place.

1. BYOB: Bring your own bags made of Jute, cloth or paper

Every year the world uses up to 5 trillion plastic bags, that’s nearly 10 million plastic bags every minute! However, alternatives to plastic bags are convenient to use and easily available in the form of eco-friendly material like jute & cloth.

Jute bags

Jute bags have a very low carbon & water footprint, are biodegradable, strong and highly durable.

Green Handle, a startup with a mission to provide eco-friendly solutions to customer and society, offers a great collection of jute bags for the everyday use.

Cloth and other eco-friendly bags

Eco Right makes eco-friendly living fun with their vibrant collection of fabric-based bags.

2. Carry reusable water bottles and cups on the go

We buy 1 million plastic bottles every minute!Yes, you read it correctly. But you know what, it’s actually cooler to carry your own bottles and coffee mugs, with your style.

Did you know more than 500.000.000 straws are used daily, enough to wrap them around the globe almost three times each day? We all can easily avoid using disposable plastic cutlery with these travel-friendly products:

Pappco, is another service that is making the world less dependent on plastic. All their products are made with 100% disposable plant-based raw material.

The list of environment-conscious practices is endless. What’s needed is an intent to keep our planet healthy. Soare you ready to adopt the green good behavior today!

Which single-use plastic are you giving up? Tell us in the comments below.